'Squad' member Rashida Tlaib withholds endorsement for Kamala during Detroit UAW speech

Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) declined to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris during a United Auto Workers (UAW) union rally in Detroit, as the Democratic Party seeks to bolster support among union voters and Muslims in swing state Michigan.

Tlaib, the only Palestinian American in Congress, has become one of the few prominent Democrats not to support Harris's presidential campaign. Her refusal follows criticism of the current administration's handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict and its overall support for Israel.

Tlaib criticized former President Donald Trump’s recent visit to Dearborn, Michigan, a city with a significant Arab American population, according to The Detroit News. Despite endorsements from Muslim mayors in nearby Dearborn Heights and Hamtramck, the congresswoman took to social media to blast the former president as a “proud islamophobe.”

"Trump is a proud Islamophobe + serial liar who doesn't stand for peace," Tlaib posted on X. "The reality is that the Biden admin’s unconditional support for genocide is what got us here. This should be a wake-up call for those who continue to support genocide. This election didn't have to be close."

At the UAW event, Tlaib refrained from endorsing Harris and instead urged union members to exercise their voting power. "Don't underestimate the power you all have," she told voters. "More than those ads, those lawn signs, those billboards, you all have more power to turn out people that understand we've got to fight back against corporate greed in our country."

While Tlaib chose not to back Harris, other members of the so-called "squad," including Reps. Ayanna Pressley(D-MA), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), have endorsed the Vice President. Ocasio-Cortez was also present at the UAW rally.

"This is the place where miracles happen," Ocasio-Cortez said, "and this is the place that is going to deliver a Kamala Harris presidency, right here in the state of Michigan."

Muslim voters seem hesitant to support Harris. A recent poll by the Council on American-Islamic Relations indicates that third-party candidate Jill Stein is leading with 42.3 percent support among Muslim voters, compared to 41 percent for Harris. Trump trails with 9.8 percent. This comes as the US has approximately 2.5 million Muslim voters, with around 240,000 located in the swing state of Michigan alone.